Nissan Motor Co. said it has developed a new type of paint that significantly reduces the temperature inside vehicles parked in direct sunlight.

The surface of a car coated with the innovative material remains up to 12 degrees cooler than that of a vehicle with standard paint, tests showed.

The company said the coating material can help rein in the temperature rise not only on the car’s body but also in the vehicle when exposed to direct sunlight.

  • @radiohead37
    link
    English
    11321 days ago

    Is this revolutionary invention called white paint?

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      8021 days ago

      This is because the substance artificially reproduces a process known as radiative cooling on the painted surface. A typical example of radiative cooling is a phenomenon where the ground releases heat to cool off.

      Nissan worked with the Chinese enterprise Radi-Cool as it specializes in the creation of radiative cooling technologies and materials.

      (…)

      However, one obstacle remains: the paint is six times thicker than the usual coating on the car body surface. The substance is also more expensive, which would add to the total cost of a new vehicle.

      That, in turn, makes it difficult for the coating material to be utilized for mass-produced passenger automobiles.

      For this reason, Nissan is looking to commercialize the paint on ambulances and other specialized vehicles as the first step.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        3621 days ago

        However, one obstacle remains: the paint is six times thicker than the usual coating on the car body surface. The substance is also more expensive, which would add to the total cost of a new vehicle.

        That, in turn, makes it difficult for the coating material to be utilized for mass-produced passenger automobiles.

        With 6 times thicker paint there’s a chance it also wouldn’t rust like a proper Nissan and we can’t have that, now can we

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        1221 days ago

        …the paint is six times thicker than the usual coating on the car body surface… looking to commercialize the paint on ambulances and other specialized vehicles as the first step.

        This is the best part of the article.

        After driving ambulance during Australian summers, in the Great Victorian Desert, this would assist so much with operating temperatures. A literal life-saver, if the AC ever broke, also.

    • Onno (VK6FLAB)
      link
      fedilink
      English
      2221 days ago

      It’s staggering to me the number of black cars being sold in hot countries like Australia. Not to mention just how hard they are to see against the background of a bitumen road.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        721 days ago

        In some countries, you get a penalty on insurance depending on the car color, with maximum penalty reserved for black cars.

    • nomad
      link
      fedilink
      English
      221 days ago

      Veeerry reflective white paint. Probably not street legal

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    5421 days ago

    And that’s 12 degrees Celsius (21.6 degrees Fahrenheit)! What kind of garbage article doesn’t include the units!?

    • DarkThoughts
      link
      fedilink
      3321 days ago

      What kind of garbage article doesn’t include the units!?

      What for? Almost no country uses Fahrenheit.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        3521 days ago

        If that’s how scientists did science, we’d have mountains of confusion. “Eh, most people will get it. Good enough.”

        Information like this is global. It’s a single “C” for clarity. That’s not an unreasonable ask.

        • DarkThoughts
          link
          fedilink
          1421 days ago

          This is a news article, not a study, which would’ve more likely used Kelvin, which would be still 12 degrees. It’s for everyday people, which almost all of which use Celsius to measure temperature. People outside of the few countries who use Fahrenheit don’t get confused about it because it’s literally the only measurement they use in their life. If you travel outside the US you will find that no one adds Fahrenheit conversations anywhere and that pretty much all temperatures are listed in Celsius.

          • @[email protected]
            link
            fedilink
            English
            1421 days ago

            You’re arguing that it’s not worth the effort to be clear over a single letter, from a place of what appears to be some American-oriented xenophobia. Not a good look.

            But to your point about travel, that isn’t analogous. This isn’t an American tourist going to another country, where the temperature context is Celsius. This is an article disseminated globally; by its very nature, the context should be agnostic of locale, and so it would behoove the authors to be clear (again, with a single letter) so that there is no confusion.

            • DarkThoughts
              link
              fedilink
              1221 days ago

              Calling out US entitlement isn’t xenophobia. That self applied victim complex is just proving my point.

              This is an article disseminated globally

              Anything on the internet is inherently accessible globally, unless there’s a geo-block in place. That does not mean that the things on the internet have to inherently be tailored to US standards or with US viewers in mind. The clearly not US sounding website “The Asahi Shimbun” even specifically has the subtitle “Asia & Japan Watch”, which should make it more than obvious that this is not a US focused media. The only confusion coming up here is when you have to assume US units being used everywhere else, which simply is not the case.

              • @[email protected]
                link
                fedilink
                English
                1221 days ago

                Again, you’re quibbling about the letter C for the sake of clarity and calling that US entitlement. You’re welcome to die on that hill, but it seems like a silly one to die upon because you have some beef with Americans.

                • DarkThoughts
                  link
                  fedilink
                  621 days ago

                  Again, you’re quibbling about the letter C for the sake of clarity

                  No, that’s what you are doing. lol I’m telling you that the letter is irrelevant for the majority of people in the world because we all already assuming the correct units of temperature and you seem to take an issue with that fact.

              • @[email protected]
                link
                fedilink
                English
                421 days ago

                I’ve definitely seen some non-US news sources convert to US common units based on my locale. I’d much prefer they just clearly state what they’re using, especially like here where it’s just a matter of adding one character - similar to time where it’s adding three characters for the time zone.

                It’s not even necessarily a US centric view asking for it - taking the high road here: anyone in the US interested in science is used to seeing both common and metric units. it’s really no big deal to switch back and forth. Just be aware there are multiple possibilities and indicate which you’re using.

          • @[email protected]
            link
            fedilink
            English
            221 days ago

            Maybe it’s a mental reading thing. I always “hear” the word “degrees” in my head when I see °, so I like the extra effort to include that, but I also know that colloquially, people are a lot lazier.

    • MHLoppy
      link
      fedilink
      2021 days ago

      Or 53.6 degrees Fahrenheit if you believe whoever wrote the page for Nissan lmao. I guess they just typed it into a converter with no context, and the converter spat out an answer amounting to “if your thermometer says it’s 12 degrees C, that would be 53.6 degrees F”… but without that context.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        321 days ago

        There probably wasn’t even anyone who actually wrote it. Fed it into some LLM to generate the page and no one actually edited it to make sure everything made sense

        • MHLoppy
          link
          fedilink
          721 days ago

          Fair point, but I guess I would hope that the person being paid to write the copy would check it, since getting that right seems like it’s part of their job description ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          2
          edit-2
          21 days ago

          That’s why it’s a better choice to just clearly identify the units and not attempt to be clever about converting for a particular audience

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      1621 days ago

      I agree clarification never hurts, but the entire world except for ~4% of highly entitled population will read that right.

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          10
          edit-2
          21 days ago

          Fair, my bad! Sorry if it was offensive.

          I just got a little sick of all the Fahrenheit (and also Imperial) domination around here. This, in turn, is often left without clarification, despite the system being way less popular.

          Lemmy as a platform is extremely America-centric, despite having tons of folks from everywhere else, which is aggravating in the long run. World really, really doesn’t all revolve around land of the free.

          • @[email protected]
            link
            fedilink
            English
            121 days ago

            Being from Russia, I’m fine with people using the units they are more confident with or used to.

            (Not specifying units may be a bit confusing, but then people here don’t say\write “it’s 20 degrees Celsius” either.)

            • @[email protected]
              link
              fedilink
              English
              1
              edit-2
              21 days ago

              Russian-languaged media is not commonly consumed by someone living under imperial/Fahrenheit system, so it’s only natural.

              For English, it might make sense to at least always add Celsius in parentheses, unless it’s highly regional news.

              Also, привет российским леммиводам :D

        • DarkThoughts
          link
          fedilink
          621 days ago

          The attitude comes from Americans expecting the world circling around them.

          • @[email protected]
            link
            fedilink
            English
            721 days ago

            The comment asked to list out the units which is a common thing to do. You don’t list out a scientific value without its units. They didn’t say list it out for Americans. Maybe the study was done in the US and they listed it in F. How would you know? So who came in here with an attitude?

            • DarkThoughts
              link
              fedilink
              221 days ago

              No, they converted it to Fahrenheit because that’s what they use & expect to be clarified upon.

              • @[email protected]
                link
                fedilink
                English
                421 days ago

                No, they first listed the units which is Celsius and then converted it themselves and didn’t excepted it to be converted. No one is complaining that it’s not in F but rather that the units are missing.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        621 days ago

        Given that a lot of English language media are either located in the US or target the US market, I’d expect the value to be expressed in Fahrenheit unless stated otherwise.

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          421 days ago

          Original article is about Asia, and Lemmy is an international platform, so neither applies here

          I don’t mind some actually regional things presented in whatever system they use in there - although I’d much prefer if we’d all go metric already. C’mon!

          • @[email protected]
            link
            fedilink
            English
            221 days ago

            The original article is not about Asia, it’s about a technical innovation. Regardless, although we’re on an international platform, it’s easy to see that many topics are US-centered, and many sources too - regardless of the subject.

            • @[email protected]
              link
              fedilink
              English
              521 days ago

              “Asia&Japan Watch” is right under their name.

              This topic is not centered in the US by any metric. It’s just an example of a Lemmy bias.

              • @[email protected]
                link
                fedilink
                English
                121 days ago

                a lot of English language media are either located in the US or target the US market

                or target the US market

                So regardless of the website’s name or origin, it could be an English language outlet targeted at the US audience. Which is quite common. Which is why I explicitly added this remark to the comment you initially replied.

                So why are we back here? What exactly are you trying to prove? All I said that I’d expect a value to be expressed in Fahrenheit unless stated otherwise. I didn’t say that you should do that, or that’s somewhat objective. I was simply arguing that despite only ~4% of population using Fahrenheit, it has much more influence due to the listed factors.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      220 days ago

      Why would it be anything else?

      It’s clearly too low a number to be °K. And since the only two valid units of measurement for temperature are Kelvin and Celsius, it must be °C.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        7
        edit-2
        20 days ago

        A differential temperature of 12C is equal to a differential temperature of 12K…… You don’t take the offset into account for differential temperatures.

        • Cethin
          link
          fedilink
          English
          1320 days ago

          Well, they would have invented the specific formulation they’re using. I’m sure it’s not exactly like this but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s the same concept with microbeads.

          No one invents anything totally new. It’s all adding on to what others have made in the past. Nothing has ever been created from scratch.

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    4121 days ago

    I seriously doubt that, tests have been performed comparing black and white painted cars, and the difference was insignificant. The heat buildup in a car is due to the the sunlight entering through the windows.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        18
        edit-2
        21 days ago

        Also this is problematic:

        12 degrees cooler

        But by what scale? If it’s Flaffenfeit, it’s just half an ounce!!!

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      3121 days ago

      To add to your comment, ceramic window tint is a night and day difference. My steering wheel, shifter, and all couldn’t be touched after work. I wore driving gloves to get home. With the tint there slightly warm and the AC doesn’t take half the drive to catch up, the car is cool by the first stop light.

      Maybe they should sell cars with that by default instead?

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          11
          edit-2
          20 days ago

          Yes. It contains ceramic nano particles that reflect UV without interfering with visibility.

          edit: I meant IR. But it reflects both.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      821 days ago

      Could you link one of these? All the ones that I can find say there’s quite a bit of a difference

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        7
        edit-2
        21 days ago

        OK I’ll link the danish test, this test is done with 2 cars that are identical, except for the color of the paint:

        https://livsstil.tv2.dk/2018-05-24-bliver-en-sort-bil-varmere-i-solen-end-en-hvid-tv-2-har-lavet-testen

        Konklusionen er altså, at den sorte bil ikke varmes mærkbart mere op end den hvide.

        Translation:
        The conclusion is that the black car does not heat up noticeably more in the sun than the white.

        So it does a little bit that you can measure, but not enough to really make a difference.

        Det skyldes ifølge Christian Bahl, seniorforsker hos DTU Energi, at bilerne opvarmes gennem ruderne.

        According to Christian Bahl senior researcher at DTU energy, that is because the cars are heated through the windows.
        (DTU is a well recognized institution for scientific research in Denmark.)

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          321 days ago

          Maybe the fact that the experiment was done when outside were only 20-22 degrees made the difference less noticeable? Otherwise I can’t explain why all the other tests I’ve found said the difference was 5-10+ degrees.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        1
        edit-2
        21 days ago

        Sorry can’t find it, all I can find in english are some where the data isn’t clear.
        If a white car has brighter interior it will stay slightly cooler, I cannot find a test where everything is the same except the color of the car.
        What I can say however, is that the test I saw was performed in Denmark. It’s possible countries with hotter climates may observe some difference?

        Obviously the main source of heat is what enters through the windows, and how much is reflected out again does have an influence.,

        If a white car has white seats and interior, they will obviously not heat as much as black seats and interior.

        The white color on the exterior will also reflect more light into the car, except maybe at noon.

        Edit PS:
        I linked the danish test in a new response.

        • Jojo, Lady of the West
          link
          fedilink
          English
          121 days ago

          Obviously the main source of heat is what enters through the windows, and how much is reflected out again does have an influence.,

          A lot of things seem obvious but turn out not to be, or not as much as I’ve first thought. Hence the usefulness of data and studies rather than mere reasoning.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      121 days ago

      They should install automated blinds like some high end luxury cars have except make them out of that silvery windscreen sunshade stuff.

  • Poot
    link
    fedilink
    English
    3821 days ago

    They’re currently working hard for a way to make it subscription.

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    3820 days ago

    I just love how humans will do anything other than actually focus on fixing the problem. Love it.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        920 days ago

        I mean, if you’re a middle age bro with a retail supervisor job compensating to show off to teen girls, I guess.

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          3
          edit-2
          19 days ago

          I see, thanks for pointing out that I’m a stereotype. FML

          TBF, the 350Z was the sports car to have when I was a teenager. Not my fault that I can only afford one just now in my mid-30s, haha. I blame Ronald Regan for screwing over working-class citizens. If I had the money my parents had, I’d be driving an EV by now.

          (edit: and FWIW I’m in a happy relationship with an adult woman similar to my age)

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        420 days ago

        There’s a very long list of two door sports cars I’d buy instead of one of those bloated excuses.

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          120 days ago

          I’d like to see that list, cause I’m I’m considering selling the car in a year or two. Requirements: 2 doors, convertable, 300+ BHP, manual transmission, stability control (cause I’m a bad driver lol), under $15K.

            • @[email protected]
              link
              fedilink
              English
              119 days ago

              Already considered all of those before buying the Z. None of them meet my horsepower requirements. And the last time I checked, they don’t make a convertible WRX and BRZ/FRS/86.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        3
        edit-2
        20 days ago

        I had a 370Z. Basically the same chassis with a bigger engine.

        Feels like sitting in a bathtub. It’s got a heavy ass flywheel that makes the V6 feel as smooth as a V8, but with predictable effects on responsiveness. You can cut the fly weight in half and it’s still perfectly good to run on the street without issues.

        I traded it in for an Miata NC and never looked back. Sure, the Z has more power, but it doesn’t make good use of it the way a Miata does.

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          2
          edit-2
          20 days ago

          Funny you mention that; I had the opportunity to buy an ND Miata for $5K more. Went with the 350Z instead. Now your comment is making me second guess myself, even though I love how the 350 handles.

          It glides through corners so damn well, I can’t possibly imagine it getting any better than this, but you “Miata is always the answer” people always come of the woodwork and make me second guess my decision. The low horsepower figures always got to me. But now I’m thinking that maybe I should have just taken the damn test drive before falling in love with the Z.

  • @[email protected]
    link
    fedilink
    English
    2720 days ago

    Twelve degrees what? A degree Celsius is more than twice a degree in Fahrenheit.

    State your units, FFS.

  • Rolling Resistance
    link
    fedilink
    English
    2421 days ago

    Can they develop a paint that reduces the amount of cars? That would be more helpful.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      8
      edit-2
      21 days ago

      They found a very interesting way of selling their hybrid cars as full on EVs where I live. Their e-power stuff are small ICEs working as generators for electric motors that then drive the wheels. Apparently the fact that the wheels get all their power from an electric motor makes it definitely not a hybrid no sir, despite the fact the cars have tiny ass batteries and the single source of power for the whole system is the ICE. Also they somehow have worse fuel efficiency than many contemporary ICEs that cost quite a bit less. I don’t understand Nissan.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        320 days ago

        A few car companies seem to be doing that. Toyota(?) here are advertising their hybrid vehicles as “self-charging electric vehicles” instead of a hybrid, even though there’s no way to plug them in and not have them self charge.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      521 days ago

      Probably yes, but it may not actually be doable. Not just because of how much there is to paint, but because the energy doesn’t just evaporate. It’s got to go somewhere. In this case I’m assuming it’s reflected, even if diffused. If everything does this, things that don’t (people, cars, pets, etc) will get all that extra energy.

      Wouldn’t want to end up in a situation like this: https://www.businessinsider.com/death-ray-skyscraper-is-wreaking-havoc-on-london-for-a-few-totally-insane-reasons-2015-7

        • @[email protected]
          link
          fedilink
          English
          220 days ago

          Oh great so now the rest of the universe has to deal with it. Really just kicking the can aren’t we

      • ✺roguetrick✺
        link
        fedilink
        English
        3
        edit-2
        21 days ago

        The amount of folks who have melted their shitty low quality thermoplastic patio furniture with their sliding glass windows will always amuse me, but overall I don’t consider IR radiation to be a big problem. Using a bunch of VOCs to paint everything and pollute a city would be though.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        320 days ago

        Ok, so don’t paint it on any concave surfaces. Most buildings have flat or convex surfaces.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        220 days ago

        great video. Its wild that it is functioning as an IR emitter and just beaming things into space.

    • The Liver
      link
      fedilink
      English
      221 days ago

      Is metal paint and concrete paint the same thing? I’m not a painter

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        5
        edit-2
        21 days ago

        Ultimately, they can be, but there’s lots of differences between them once they reach the bucket you buy. They have different adhesion qualities, but that could be addressed with an appropriate primer. They have different final finish surface requirements, which could be an issue for how the paint works. I remember seeing dragonfly-wing-style paint that was white when viewed perfectly straight buy blue when viewed at any off angle due to a microscopic vertical grid of blue walls. There may also be a required clearcoat component that may not be compatible between the two surfaces. Metal paint is also designed to handle the flex of metal where as concrete paint would barely be concerned about that but possible address crumbling instead.

        Edit: and after reading the article, it’s a radiative-cooling paint rather than a reflecting coating. Concrete has a much lower thermal conductivity so this may not be effective in transferring heat out of the concrete.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        English
        120 days ago

        Metal paint is concrete paint. Microsoft paint is abstract paint. This comment is metaphorical paint.